Photo gallery: Birdwatchers flock to spot rare gull

Wednesday

Jan 28, 2009 at 12:01 AMJan 28, 2009 at 5:23 AM

Birdwatchers from far and near have been flocking to the Massachusetts communities of Plymouth and Gloucester in hopes of adding an extremely rare bird to their life list. Ivory gulls normally stay well above Newfoundland living on artic ice where they follow polar bears to feed on the scraps and carcasses they leave behind after making a kill.The last report of a fully mature ivory gull in Massachusetts occurred in the 1800s. In 1976 an immature bird was spotted in Rockport. Three other immature birds were seen in the 1940s.

Birdwatchers from far and near have been flocking to the Massachusetts communities of Plymouth and Gloucester in hopes of adding an extremely rare bird to their life list. Ivory gulls normally stay well above Newfoundland living on artic ice where they follow polar bears to feed on the scraps and carcasses they leave behind after making a kill.The last report of a fully mature ivory gull in Massachusetts occurred in the 1800s. In 1976 an immature bird was spotted in Rockport. Three other immature birds were seen in the 1940s.